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Proteomic Investigation Of Aging And Omega-3 Supplementation In Rat Skeletal Muscle, Francesco Maria Del Re, David W. Russ, Kalina P. Dimova, Stylianos P. Scordilis May 2025

Proteomic Investigation Of Aging And Omega-3 Supplementation In Rat Skeletal Muscle, Francesco Maria Del Re, David W. Russ, Kalina P. Dimova, Stylianos P. Scordilis

Biological Sciences: Faculty Publications

Aging is a pan-organ process with an intricate and multimodal nature. Deciphering the aging phenomenon is complex, yet recent attention is analyzing the potential benefits of non-invasive life adjustments to achieve healthy aging. Omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (FA) have emerged as promising nutraceuticals for a plethora of different medical conditions. In the current study we conducted an in-depth, bottom-up, global, shotgun proteomic study (LC-MS/MS) investigating both the effects of aging on skel- etal muscle and the potential alterations due to ω-3 FA. Sprague Dawley rats were fed different diets and divided into four groups (n = 5 per group): adult …


The Aquatic Symbiosis Genomics Project: Probing The Evolution Of Symbiosis Across The Tree Of Life, Matthew Berriman, Victoria Mckenna, Roxanne Beinart, John M. Archibald, Ute Hentschel, Michael N. Dawson, Jose V. Lopez, Patrick J. Keeling, Jillian M. Petersen, Anne W. Thompson, Multiple Addiional Authors May 2025

The Aquatic Symbiosis Genomics Project: Probing The Evolution Of Symbiosis Across The Tree Of Life, Matthew Berriman, Victoria Mckenna, Roxanne Beinart, John M. Archibald, Ute Hentschel, Michael N. Dawson, Jose V. Lopez, Patrick J. Keeling, Jillian M. Petersen, Anne W. Thompson, Multiple Addiional Authors

Biology Faculty Publications and Presentations

We present the Aquatic Symbiosis Genomics Project, a global collaboration to generate high quality genome sequences for a wide range of eukaryotes and their microbial symbionts. Launched under the Symbiosis in Aquatic Systems Initiative of the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation, the ASG Project brings together researchers from across the globe who hope to use these reference genomes to augment and extend their analyses of the dynamics, mechanisms and environmental importance of symbioses. Applying large-scale, high-throughput sequencing and assembly technologies, the ASG collaboration will assemble and annotate the genomes of 500 symbiotic organisms – both the “hosts” and the microbial …


Evaluating The Protective Role Of Epo-R76e In Oxidative Stress-Induced Cell Death In Retinal Pigment Epithelium, Jemima Alam May 2025

Evaluating The Protective Role Of Epo-R76e In Oxidative Stress-Induced Cell Death In Retinal Pigment Epithelium, Jemima Alam

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Age-Related Macular Degeneration (AMD) causes dysfunction and loss of Retinal pigment epithelium (RPE). The degeneration and death of RPE cells causes irreversible visual impairment. Oxidative stress is a widely accepted triggering factor for RPE dysfunction. A hormone called Erythropoietin (EPO) is responsible to facilitate the erythropoiesis process, prevents progenitor cells from apoptosis and protects photoreceptors downregulating retinal degeneration. In this study, we aim to elucidate the role of EPO in downregulating oxidative stress in RPE. It is hypothesized that EPO will have a positive impact on suppressing oxidative stress and ferroptosis-mediated RPE degeneration due to its vital role in apoptosis …


Tickborne Colpodella Species Infections: Time For A New Integrated Approach To Understand Transmission And Pathogenicity, T. Y. Sam-Yellowe, Trinity Nims, Sona Qaderi, Mary M. Asraf May 2025

Tickborne Colpodella Species Infections: Time For A New Integrated Approach To Understand Transmission And Pathogenicity, T. Y. Sam-Yellowe, Trinity Nims, Sona Qaderi, Mary M. Asraf

Biological, Geological, and Environmental Faculty Publications

Colpodella species are free-living predatory protists that prey on algae, ciliates and bodonids using myzocytosis. Colpodella species have been reported in human and animal infections. Polymerase chain reaction (PCR) using primers targeting 18S rRNA genes of Cryptosporidium and piroplasms have identified Colpodella species in arthropods, host blood and feces, demonstrating the phylogenetic closeness of Colpodella species to the apicomplexa. However, in human, animal and arthropod hosts, the life cycle stages of Colpodella are unknown. In this literature review, we provide an overview of the widespread occurrence of Colpodella species in ticks, and pathogenicity in humans and animals. We discuss methods …


Sustainable Management Of Copper-Contaminated Soils Using Vetiver Root Biochar, Sameer Neve, Dibyendu Sarkar, Zhiming Zhang, Rupali Datta May 2025

Sustainable Management Of Copper-Contaminated Soils Using Vetiver Root Biochar, Sameer Neve, Dibyendu Sarkar, Zhiming Zhang, Rupali Datta

Michigan Tech Publications

Throughout the 19th and early 20th centuries, copper mining was a predominant industry in Michigan's Upper Peninsula, resulting in substantial environmental issues due to the generation of mining waste. This waste, referred to as stamp sands, was disposed of in Lake Superior, causing severe harm to aquatic ecosystems. Later, the stamp sands were dredged and deposited along the lake shores, causing large-scale contamination with copper. This rendered the land incapable of supporting vegetation. This study investigates the efficacy of vetiver (Chrysopogon zizanioides) root biochar as a soil amendment to enhance the quality of copper-contaminated stamp sands. The biochar was produced …


Wildlife Road Mortalities During Covid-19 Pandemic-Related Lockdown In South Texas: A Comparative Survey, Bradley Evan Beer, Kevin W. Ryer, Md Saydur Rahman, John H. Young Jr., Richard J. Kline May 2025

Wildlife Road Mortalities During Covid-19 Pandemic-Related Lockdown In South Texas: A Comparative Survey, Bradley Evan Beer, Kevin W. Ryer, Md Saydur Rahman, John H. Young Jr., Richard J. Kline

School of Earth, Environmental, & Marine Sciences Faculty Publications

Mortalities of wildlife caused by collisions with vehicles along roads are increasing in prevalence, threatening the existence of various species and populations. The COVID-19 pandemic-related lockdown provided an opportunity to gain a better understanding of how wildlife vehicle mortality occurrences change in response to anthropogenic variables and how varying survey methods influence obtaining mortality data. In this study, data were collected in three observation periods: pre-lockdown (PreL), during lockdown (DL), and post-lockdown (PostL) in south Texas. There were 194 wildlife mortalities recorded during weeks 4–27 of 2020. Results of this study showed that road mortality survey counts did not change …


Ammonia Regulation In Aedes Taeniorhynchus, A Salt-Water Mosquito, Joseph Edmonds May 2025

Ammonia Regulation In Aedes Taeniorhynchus, A Salt-Water Mosquito, Joseph Edmonds

Undergraduate Honors Theses

The salt tolerant mosquito species Aedes taeniorhynchus has been observed in high salinity and ammonia conditions. Previous studies indicate Na+/K+ ATPase (NKA), the proton pump vacuolar-type H+ ATPase (VHA) and sodium-dependent cation-chloride cotransporters (NKCC’s) in sodium secretion in larval Aedes taeniorhynchus. However ammonia transporter such as Rh-protein, Amt1, and Amt2 have only been characterized in Aedes taeniorhynchus’s fresh water relative Aedes aegypti. Our research exhibits the expression of these transporters in A.taeniorhynchus using immunohistochemistry techniques. Evidence of VHA and NKA function in ammonia transport was characterized in vivo using drug antagonists in varying saline and ammonia concentrations. Ammonia flux rates …


Color Tests For The Presumptive Identification Of A Range Of Benzodiazepines, Regan Mulvin May 2025

Color Tests For The Presumptive Identification Of A Range Of Benzodiazepines, Regan Mulvin

Honors Projects

Color tests are presumptive chemical tests that determine the class of drug in both laboratory and field settings. Despite the rising popularity of benzodiazepines and the usefulness of color tests, there is no widely accepted color test for identifying them. This study tested six different color tests against five benzodiazepines, including diazepam, clonazepam, lorazepam, alprazolam, and flualprazolam, to identify which of the tests would work most generally across all benzodiazepines. Of the six tests, the McKibben test, the Janovsky test, and the Zimmerman test all showed potential usefulness as a presumptive color test. More studies should be done on a …


Low Cd25 In Alk+ Anaplastic Large Cell Lymphoma Is Associated With Older Age, Thrombocytopenia, And Increased Expression Of Surface Cd3 And Cd8, Shuyu E, L Jeffrey Medeiros, Hong Fang, Shaoying Li, Guilin Tang, Sa A Wang, Wei Wang, C Cameron Yin, M James You, Swaminathan P Iyer, Luis Malpica, Lianqun Qiu, Zhenya Tang, Qing Wei, Pei Lin, Jie Xu May 2025

Low Cd25 In Alk+ Anaplastic Large Cell Lymphoma Is Associated With Older Age, Thrombocytopenia, And Increased Expression Of Surface Cd3 And Cd8, Shuyu E, L Jeffrey Medeiros, Hong Fang, Shaoying Li, Guilin Tang, Sa A Wang, Wei Wang, C Cameron Yin, M James You, Swaminathan P Iyer, Luis Malpica, Lianqun Qiu, Zhenya Tang, Qing Wei, Pei Lin, Jie Xu

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Background/objectives: Anaplastic lymphoma kinase (ALK)-positive (+) anaplastic large cell lymphoma (ALCL) is known to express CD25, but its significance has not been well studied.

Methods: In the present study, we identified 54 ALK+ ALCL patients with CD25 results available and investigated the significance of CD25 expression levels.

Results: Forty-two (78%) cases had high CD25 expressions, whereas low CD25 expressions were found in 12 (22%) cases. Compared with ALK+ ALCL patients with CD25-high neoplasms, patients with CD25-low neoplasms were older (median: 40 years vs. 29 years, p = 0.01) and more often had thrombocytopenia (40% vs. 0%, p = 0.02). Between …


The Impact Of Growth Hormone-Releasing Hormone Antagonist On Human Adipose-Derived Stem Cells, Jeanne Michelle Dugas May 2025

The Impact Of Growth Hormone-Releasing Hormone Antagonist On Human Adipose-Derived Stem Cells, Jeanne Michelle Dugas

Master's Theses

Obesity is a condition that affects over 40% of American adults and contributes to numerous preventable health issues. This condition is caused by increased adipose tissue, which forms when stem cells transform into adipocytes. Mesenchymal stem cells, including human adipose-derived stem cells (hASC), are multipotent with the ability to differentiate into adipocytes, osteocytes, or chondrocytes. Many factors affect this transformation, including the peptide growth hormone-releasing hormone (GHRH). The main role of GHRH is to trigger the release of growth hormone, but it has also been found to play an important role in adipocyte metabolism. We expect that if the differentiation …


The Antioxidant Potential Of Rosemary Leaf-Derived Nanovesicles, Shani Akila Griffin May 2025

The Antioxidant Potential Of Rosemary Leaf-Derived Nanovesicles, Shani Akila Griffin

Master's Theses

Human dermal fibroblasts are essential for maintaining skin homeostasis. However, exposure to exogenous and endogenous stressors can lead to fibroblast instability, extracellular matrix degradation, and excessive reactive oxygen species (ROS) production. These factors contribute to skin aging and ROS-induced skin disorders leading to hair loss. Adverse effects from synthetic treatments have driven interest in natural alternatives like plant extracts for skin therapy. However, the polyphenols in these treatments require an effective delivery system to ensure their stability and targeted application. Plant derived nanovesicles (PDNVs) are emerging as a promising natural alternative for therapeutic applications. Their biocompatibility, stability, and encapsulated compounds …


Targeting Neuronal Nitric Oxide Synthase (Nnos) As A Novel Approach To Enhancing The Anti-Melanoma Activity Of Immune Checkpoint Inhibitors, Anika R. Patel, Shirley Tong, Kate Alison Lozada, Amardeep Awasthi, Richard B. Silverman, Jennifer Totonchy, Sun Yang May 2025

Targeting Neuronal Nitric Oxide Synthase (Nnos) As A Novel Approach To Enhancing The Anti-Melanoma Activity Of Immune Checkpoint Inhibitors, Anika R. Patel, Shirley Tong, Kate Alison Lozada, Amardeep Awasthi, Richard B. Silverman, Jennifer Totonchy, Sun Yang

Pharmacy Faculty Articles and Research

Background and Objectives: Neuronal nitric oxide synthase (nNOS) overexpressed in melanoma plays a critical role in disease progression. Our previous studies demonstrated that nNOS inhibitors exhibited potent anti-melanoma activity and regulated PD-L1 expressions in the presence of interferon-gamma (IFN-γ). However, the role of nNOS in the melanoma immune response has not been well defined. Methods: Changes in gene expression profiles after nNOS inhibitor treatment were determined by transcriptomic analysis. A melanoma mouse model was used to determine the effects of nNOS inhibition on peripheral T cells and the in vivo anti-tumor activity of combining nNOS inhibitors with immune …


Thsd1 Is A Multifaceted Regulator In Health And Disease, Mengjun Dai, Kuizhi Qu, Sophie Liu, Zhen Xu, Yan-Ning Rui May 2025

Thsd1 Is A Multifaceted Regulator In Health And Disease, Mengjun Dai, Kuizhi Qu, Sophie Liu, Zhen Xu, Yan-Ning Rui

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Thrombospondin Type 1 Domain-Containing Protein 1 (THSD1) is a transmembrane protein increasingly recognized for its critical roles in vascular biology and disease pathogenesis. Initially identified as a marker of hematopoietic stem and endothelial cells during embryogenesis, THSD1 has since been implicated in a wide spectrum of physiological and pathological processes. This paper consolidates current knowledge on THSD1, with a focus on its roles in vascular integrity, perinatal disorders, and tumorigenesis. In vascular systems, THSD1 promotes focal adhesion assembly and suppresses autophagy-mediated adhesion turnover, thereby stabilizing endothelial attachment and maintaining barrier function. Genetic and functional studies support its protective role against …


Characterization Of Sars-Cov-2 Replication And Transcription Complexes Via Structural And Evolutionary Approaches, Amelie Ghirardo, Ben Shabatian, Avishai Aghelian, Kyle Tau, Eleonora Gianti May 2025

Characterization Of Sars-Cov-2 Replication And Transcription Complexes Via Structural And Evolutionary Approaches, Amelie Ghirardo, Ben Shabatian, Avishai Aghelian, Kyle Tau, Eleonora Gianti

Undergraduate Research

Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) caused around 700M cases and over 7M COVID-19-related deaths recorded worldwide (World Health Organization, March 2025). Aiming to effectively combat this and other disease-causing Coronaviruses (CoV), unprecedented research efforts led to the development of new vaccines and antiviral therapies. Due to emergence of variants of concern (VOCs) with increased transmissibility, immune evasion from vaccination, and potential to resist the available treatments, SARS-CoV-2 continues to represent a major threat to global health. Hence, there is a pressing need to discover new antivirals with broad-spectrum efficacy against multiple SARS-CoV-2 variants and related CoVs. This project …


Intergenerational Toxic Stress In Preschool Children, Cynthia R. Rovnaghi May 2025

Intergenerational Toxic Stress In Preschool Children, Cynthia R. Rovnaghi

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

Worldwide there is an outcry for understanding, integrating, preventing, coordinating, and collaboratively treating the neuropsychosocial components of intergenerational transmission of trauma-induced toxic stress (ITTS). The purpose of this quasi-experimental, cross-sectional, secondary analysis of the Hair Biomarkers Study Phase I (HBS-I) was to obtain empirical evidence supporting the introduction of the Theory of Neurogenesis Abruption (ToNA) and to standardize the use of hair biomarkers and child developmental scales for early detection of central nervous system (CNS) dysregulation. Birth and developmental outcomes of children born to parents with a diagnosed serious mental health condition (DSMHC) and/or substance (ab)use (SA/SU) disorder (children, n …


Factors Influencing Student Motivations And Experiences In Stem Course Office Hours, Gabriella R. Dauber, Jeremy L. Hsu May 2025

Factors Influencing Student Motivations And Experiences In Stem Course Office Hours, Gabriella R. Dauber, Jeremy L. Hsu

Biology, Chemistry, and Environmental Sciences Faculty Articles and Research

Office hours are a part of nearly all science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) courses, with many academic and affective benefits for students who attend. However, despite their ubiquity, there has only been limited past work examining the sources of knowledge students draw from to shape their perceptions of office hours, as well as the factors that influence students' experiences in STEM course office hours. Here, we conducted semistructured interviews with 20 students enrolled in an introductory STEM course to investigate what motivates students to attend STEM course office hours, the factors that shape their experiences in office hours, and …


Personalizing Neoadjuvant Chemotherapy Regimens For Triple-Negative Breast Cancer Using A Biology-Based Digital Twin, Chase Christenson, Chengyue Wu, David A Hormuth, Jingfei Ma, Clinton Yam, Gaiane M Rauch, Thomas E Yankeelov May 2025

Personalizing Neoadjuvant Chemotherapy Regimens For Triple-Negative Breast Cancer Using A Biology-Based Digital Twin, Chase Christenson, Chengyue Wu, David A Hormuth, Jingfei Ma, Clinton Yam, Gaiane M Rauch, Thomas E Yankeelov

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Despite advances triple negative breast cancer treatment, ~50% of patients will not achieve a pathological complete response prior to surgery with standard of care neoadjuvant therapy (NAT). We hypothesize that personalized regimens for NAT could significantly improve patient outcomes, which we address with a patient-specific digital twin framework. This framework is established by calibrating a biology-based model to longitudinal magnetic resonance images with approximate Bayesian computation. We then apply optimal control theory to either (1) reduce the final tumor cell number with equivalent dose, or (2) reduce the total dose of NAT with equivalent response. For (1), the personalized regimens …


Comparative Efficacy Of Combined Versus Singular Auditory Alpha-Theta Brainwave Entrainment And Hypnotherapy Modalities In Chronic Pain Management, Jennifer Nicole Leavitt May 2025

Comparative Efficacy Of Combined Versus Singular Auditory Alpha-Theta Brainwave Entrainment And Hypnotherapy Modalities In Chronic Pain Management, Jennifer Nicole Leavitt

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

This experimental quantitative research, a randomized controlled trial, evaluated combined efficacy of auditory alpha-theta brainwave entrainment (BWE) and hypnotherapy in chronic pain management versus each modality alone. Chronic pain is a serious clinical challenge that may benefit from novel, nonpharmacological interventions. Previous studies have demonstrated benefits of both BWE and hypnotherapy for pain; but research on combined effects was not identified. This study hypothesized that a synergistic approach would offer superior pain relief compared to singular modalities. The study utilized a randomized controlled trial design with a sample size of 38 participants, initially, aged 25 to 65 years old, recruited …


Global Maintenance Of Histone Post-Translational Modifications During The Transition Into Anoxia In Embryos Of The Annual Killifish, Chelsea Hughes, Elizabeth A. Mojica, Dietmar Kültz, Jason E. Podrabsky May 2025

Global Maintenance Of Histone Post-Translational Modifications During The Transition Into Anoxia In Embryos Of The Annual Killifish, Chelsea Hughes, Elizabeth A. Mojica, Dietmar Kültz, Jason E. Podrabsky

Biology Faculty Publications and Presentations

Many organisms have adapted to survive anoxic or hypoxic environments, but the epigenetic responses involved in this successful stress response are not well described in most species. Embryos of the annual killifish have the greatest tolerance to anoxia of all vertebrates, making them a powerful model to study the cellular mechanisms necessary for anoxia tolerance. However, the global histone landscape of this species has never been quantified or explored in relation to stress tolerance. Liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry and a Python bioinformatics workflow were used to identify histones and their post-translational modifications. This pipeline resulted in the detection of 252 unique …


Effectiveness Of Exercise-Based Rehabilitation In Chronic Fatigue Syndrome: A Systematic Review And Meta-Analysis, Antonio De Vera Martín, Alberto Díaz Salazar, Isidro Miguel Martín Pérez, Sebastián Eustaquio Martín Pérez May 2025

Effectiveness Of Exercise-Based Rehabilitation In Chronic Fatigue Syndrome: A Systematic Review And Meta-Analysis, Antonio De Vera Martín, Alberto Díaz Salazar, Isidro Miguel Martín Pérez, Sebastián Eustaquio Martín Pérez

International Journal of Exercise Science

International Journal of Exercise Science 18(5): 495-530, 2025. Chronic Fatigue Syndrome is a complex and debilitating disorder characterized by persistent fatigue, musculoskeletal pain, sleep disturbances, and cognitive impairments. The global prevalence is estimated between 0.2% and 0.4%, affecting over 17 million individuals worldwide, with an estimated burden exceeding 40,000 cases in Spain. Despite the exploration of exercise-based rehabilitation as a therapeutic strategy, its clinical efficacy remains a subject of ongoing debate. This study aims to evaluate the effectiveness of exercise-based rehabilitation relative to conventional treatments in improving functional capacity and alleviating fatigue among adults with CFS A systematic review and …


Transformer Decoder-Enhanced Swin Unetr For Multi-Organ Semantic Segmentation On Openkbp: Improving Radiotherapy Planning Accuracy, Zainab Adnan Jwad, Israa Hadi Ali May 2025

Transformer Decoder-Enhanced Swin Unetr For Multi-Organ Semantic Segmentation On Openkbp: Improving Radiotherapy Planning Accuracy, Zainab Adnan Jwad, Israa Hadi Ali

Karbala International Journal of Modern Science

Accurate segmentation of organs-at-risk (OARs) in head and neck CT scans is crucial for radiotherapy planning. The CNN-based decoder limitation of Swin UNETR hinders its capacity to process meaningful information from multiple organ positions essential for accurate medical segmentation. The proposed Transformer Decoder-enhanced Swin UNETR model targets the OpenKBP dataset multi-organ segmentation through its dedicated design for this purpose. The model utilizes transformers along with cross-attention approaches in its decoder to improve segmentation mask outputs through analysis of extensive global information. The model gets additional feature representation power through the addition of squeeze-and-excitation (SE) blocks linked with spatial attention mechanisms …


Computational Approach: 3d-Qsar, Molecular Docking, Molecular Dynamics Simulation Investigations, Drug- Like-Ness, And Dft Score Evaluation Of A Potential Novel And Retrosynthesis Of Some Tr-H Derivatives As Streptococcus Pneumoniae Drug., Belaidi Mustapha, Tchouar Noureddine, Djelilate Mohammed, Saleh Bufarwa, Dalal K. Thbayh May 2025

Computational Approach: 3d-Qsar, Molecular Docking, Molecular Dynamics Simulation Investigations, Drug- Like-Ness, And Dft Score Evaluation Of A Potential Novel And Retrosynthesis Of Some Tr-H Derivatives As Streptococcus Pneumoniae Drug., Belaidi Mustapha, Tchouar Noureddine, Djelilate Mohammed, Saleh Bufarwa, Dalal K. Thbayh

Karbala International Journal of Modern Science

Streptococcus pneumoniae is the main source of hospital-acquired pneumonia and meningococcal pneumonia in children, adults, and the elderly, especially the immunocompromised. Recently, it has attracted the attention of many research studies around the world as a potential target for remediation. TR-H are considered SP antibacterial agents, as they can inhibit. To describe their mode of action and to identify new antibacterial drugs against Streptococcus pneumoniae exhibiting the TR-H scaffold, the present work included 3D-QSAR, in- silico pharmacokinetic evaluation and molecular simulation modelling of TR-H. Using an atom-based method for quantitative structure-activity relationship (QSAR) study, a comprehensive 3D-QSAR model …


Potential Economic Impact Of Grapevine Phylloxera (Hemiptera: Phylloxeridae) On Western Australian Winegrapes, David C. Cook, Andrew S. Taylor, Peter S. Gardiner, Rodrigo Pires, Hamish L R Mckirdy, Karen W. Holmes, Helen Spafford May 2025

Potential Economic Impact Of Grapevine Phylloxera (Hemiptera: Phylloxeridae) On Western Australian Winegrapes, David C. Cook, Andrew S. Taylor, Peter S. Gardiner, Rodrigo Pires, Hamish L R Mckirdy, Karen W. Holmes, Helen Spafford

Viticulture Research Articles

Grapevine phylloxera Daktulosphaira vitifoliae Fitch (Hemiptera: Phylloxeridae) has been present in Australia for almost 150 years but has not spread to south-west Western Australia, in part due to the relative isolation of the region. Recent improvements in tourist access, with interstate flights now arriving at Busselton Margaret River Airport, raise concerns about potential phylloxera introductions via wine tourism. In this paper, we simulate the potential economic impact on the Western Australian winegrape industry following a hypothetical arrival event in the Margaret River wine region. We use soil texture maps to assess the suitability of winegrape-growing areas to phylloxera establishment and …


Skin Cancer Diagnosis Utilizing Hybrid Discrete Cosine Transform And High-Performance Convolutional Neural Networks, Mohammed M. Abo-Zahhad, Mohammed Abo-Zahhad May 2025

Skin Cancer Diagnosis Utilizing Hybrid Discrete Cosine Transform And High-Performance Convolutional Neural Networks, Mohammed M. Abo-Zahhad, Mohammed Abo-Zahhad

Mansoura Engineering Journal

Detecting skin cancer early and accurately is crucial for successfully treating this potentially fatal disease. Enhancing the accuracy of visual inspection techniques is often necessary to improve clinical decision-making and increase the chance of successful treatment outcomes. In this research, high-performance deep learning (DL) models for automated skin cancer categorization and early skin cancer diagnosis screening are developed and evaluated in conjunction with the discrete cosine transform (DCT). For this purpose, features are extracted from medical images using both techniques. The DCT is used for feature extraction and dimensionality reduction, while deep learning (DL) trains fully connected models for classification …


Sexual And Vegetative Recruitment Of Trembling Aspen Following A High-Severity Boreal Wildfire, Denyse A. Dawe, Ellen Whitman, Michael Michaelian, Alan J. Tepley, Marc-André Parisien May 2025

Sexual And Vegetative Recruitment Of Trembling Aspen Following A High-Severity Boreal Wildfire, Denyse A. Dawe, Ellen Whitman, Michael Michaelian, Alan J. Tepley, Marc-André Parisien

Aspen Bibliography

Background High-severity fire is rare in trembling aspen-dominated forests of the boreal region. The post-fire recruitment strategy of aspen, by either vegetative suckering or sexually (i.e., by seed), has considerable implications for subsequent forest structure, genetic diversity, and ecological resilience to shifting climatic and disturbance regimes. In this study, we take advantage of the unique opportunity provided by the Chuckegg Creek Wildfire Fire (310,000 ha) in northern Alberta, Canada, which burned at high severity through aspen stands before and after spring green-up, to document how phenology, fire severity, and stand characteristics affect recruitment one year following the fire.

Results We …


Understanding Host-Pathogen Interactions Using The Caenorhabditis Elegans – Orsay Virus Experimental Model, Chika Fujii May 2025

Understanding Host-Pathogen Interactions Using The Caenorhabditis Elegans – Orsay Virus Experimental Model, Chika Fujii

Arts & Sciences Graduate Student Theses and Dissertations

Over an evolutionary timeline, viruses have evolved ways to exploit biochemical pathways of the host for their propagation, whereas host organisms developed mechanisms to recognize virus infection and cope with them. Consequently, a better understanding of the different host factors involved in virus replication could provide insights into potential biological pathways or molecules for therapeutic targeting. Furthermore, detailed dissection of the mechanisms of virus sensing could reveal fundamentally important aspects of virus sensing that are evolutionarily conserved to mammals and offer insights into potentially underexplored areas of research. The C. elegans experimental model offers a useful platform for studying evolutionarily …


The Role Of Cephalic Mechanosensory Bristles In Flight Initiation Of The Oleander Hawkmoth, Daphnis Nerii, Maitri Manjunath May 2025

The Role Of Cephalic Mechanosensory Bristles In Flight Initiation Of The Oleander Hawkmoth, Daphnis Nerii, Maitri Manjunath

Theses and Dissertations

During flight, insects sense air movement past their bodies via sensory bristles distributed all over their body. These bristles provide mechanosensory feedback to their nervous system, thereby modulating wing motion to cope with ambient wind conditions. In many insect systems including locusts, moths, etc., flight can be rapidly initiated by stimulating a set of bristles called cephalic bristles on their head. Rapid initiation of flight requires diverse, distributed flight-related reflexes to be simultaneously activated.

Thus, we hypothesized that cephalic bristles directly and simultaneously trigger diverse flight-related reflexes. We tested this hypothesis using the Oleander hawkmoth, Daphnis nerii, as our study …


Effects Of Fibrogenic And Non Fibrogenic Nanomaterials On Cellular And Molecular Responses In Thp-1 Macrophage, Adedayo E. Oyerinde May 2025

Effects Of Fibrogenic And Non Fibrogenic Nanomaterials On Cellular And Molecular Responses In Thp-1 Macrophage, Adedayo E. Oyerinde

Biotechnology Theses

Traditional toxicological testing of nanomaterials is often low-throughput and time-consuming. Here, we aimed to develop an economically viable in vitro assay to prescreen nanomaterials with fibrogenic potential. To this end, we tested the generation of reactive oxygen species (ROS) as well as cytokines (pro- and anti-inflammatory) by macrophages following treatment with fibrogenic and non-fibrogenic nanomaterials. Both classes of nanomaterials induced ROS indistinguishably, suggesting that ROS production doesn’t predict nanomaterial fibrogenicity. We observed higher levels of IL1β and IL6 in macrophages treated with fibrogenic nanomaterials. Analysis of single-cell RNA-Sequencing data of fibrotic lungs from rodents and humans revealed overexpression of Brain …


Cost-Effective Solutions For High-Throughput Enzymatic Dna Methylation Sequencing, Amy Longtin, Marina M. Watowich, Baptiste Sadoughi, Rachel M. Petersen, Sarah F. Brosnan, Kenneth Buetow, Qiuyin Cai, Cayo Biobank Research Unit, Vanderbilt University, Michael D. Gurven, James P. Higham, Heather M. Highland, Yi-Ting Huang, Hillard Kaplan, Thomas S. Kraft, Yvonne A. L. Lim, Jirong Long, Amanda D. Melin, Michael J. Montagne, Jamie Roberson, Kee Seong Ng, Michael L. Platt, India A. Schneider-Crease, Jonathan Stieglitz, Benjamin C. Trumble, Vivek Venkataraman, Ian J. Wallace, Jie Wu, Noah Snyder-Mackler, Angela Jones, Alexander G. Bick, Amanda J. Lea May 2025

Cost-Effective Solutions For High-Throughput Enzymatic Dna Methylation Sequencing, Amy Longtin, Marina M. Watowich, Baptiste Sadoughi, Rachel M. Petersen, Sarah F. Brosnan, Kenneth Buetow, Qiuyin Cai, Cayo Biobank Research Unit, Vanderbilt University, Michael D. Gurven, James P. Higham, Heather M. Highland, Yi-Ting Huang, Hillard Kaplan, Thomas S. Kraft, Yvonne A. L. Lim, Jirong Long, Amanda D. Melin, Michael J. Montagne, Jamie Roberson, Kee Seong Ng, Michael L. Platt, India A. Schneider-Crease, Jonathan Stieglitz, Benjamin C. Trumble, Vivek Venkataraman, Ian J. Wallace, Jie Wu, Noah Snyder-Mackler, Angela Jones, Alexander G. Bick, Amanda J. Lea

ESI Publications

Characterizing DNA methylation patterns is important for addressing key questions in evolutionary biology, development, geroscience, and medical genomics. While costs are decreasing, whole-genome DNA methylation profiling remains prohibitively expensive for most population-scale studies, creating a need for cost-effective, reduced representation approaches (i.e., assays that rely on microarrays, enzyme digests, or sequence capture to target a subset of the genome). Most common whole genome and reduced representation techniques rely on bisulfite conversion, which can damage DNA resulting in DNA loss and sequencing biases. Enzymatic methyl sequencing (EM-seq) was recently proposed to overcome these issues, but thorough benchmarking of EM-seq combined with …


Multicomponent Parenteral Lipid Emulsions Do Not Prevent Liver Injury In Neonatal Pigs With Obstructive Cholestasis, Greg Guthrie, Caitlin Vonderohe, Valeria Meléndez Hebib, Barbara Stoll, Douglas Burrin May 2025

Multicomponent Parenteral Lipid Emulsions Do Not Prevent Liver Injury In Neonatal Pigs With Obstructive Cholestasis, Greg Guthrie, Caitlin Vonderohe, Valeria Meléndez Hebib, Barbara Stoll, Douglas Burrin

Children’s Nutrition Research Center Staff Publications

Biliary atresia (BA) is a pediatric liver disease that often necessitates parenteral nutrition (PN) to support growth due to impaired liver function. While soy-based lipid emulsions (SLE) are commonly used in PN, they may contribute to cholestatic liver injury. In contrast, mixed lipid emulsions (MLE) show promise in preventing cholestasis in infants without BA, potentially by restoring bile flow. However, their effectiveness in patients of complete bile duct obstruction, as seen in BA, remains uncertain. To explore the potential benefits of MLE in BA, we utilized a neonatal pig model of bile duct ligation (BDL). Pigs underwent either BDL or …